Dolphins’ Waddle is on record-setting pace and getting praise from one of NFL’s best
Hours after the Dolphins beat the Baltimore Ravens in prime time last Thursday night, rookie wide receiver Jaylen Waddle got acknowledgment of his rising star from one of the NFL’s best defensive backs.
“Jaylen Waddle [is] going to be top 10 next year,” Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey, a two-time Pro Bowler and All-Pro selection, wrote on Twitter, a nod to Waddle’s future standing among the league’s elite wideouts.
Waddle and Humphrey are connected as Alabama alumni, met each for the first time at the Crimson Tide’s season-opening game and went head-to-head for the first time at Hard Rock Stadium.
“You know, [Humphrey is] like an Alabama great,” Waddle said Wednesday. “One of the guys that you hear about before you come to the university. I got to know him. Actually, I just got to meet him that first Alabama game. Obviously a great player, and it’s a great compliment. You ultimately play the game for the respect of your peers, so just having that respect from someone of that caliber is always good.”
Through one half of his rookie season, Waddle, the No. 6 overall pick in the 2021 Draft, isn’t just getting praise from one of the league’s top defenders, but he’s on a record-setting pace while doing so. His 60 receptions are tied for the second most by a wide receiver in his first 10 NFL games. At this rate, Waddle will finish the season with 102 catches, which would not only be a Dolphins rookie record but break Anquan Boldin’s NFL rookie record of 101 receptions during the 2003 season.
Miami hasn’t yet fully tapped into the game-breaking speed he displayed in college — his 557 receiving yards ranks 29th in the NFL and his 6.9 air yards per target still ranks in the bottom half of the league for pass-catchers with at least 28 targets, according to NFL Next Gen Stats — but, similar to the entire Dolphins offense, Waddle took a positive step forward in generating more explosive plays against Baltimore.
As the third quarter was coming to a close, Waddle ran a corner route, streaking upfield and then bending diagonally back into the direction of the sideline. He found the soft spot in the Ravens’ zone coverage and quarterback Tua Tagovailoa lofted the ball to Waddle, who rose up to catch the pass and held on even after absorbing a hit from a Ravens defender. The 35-yard completion was Waddle’s longest reception since Week 1.
“It felt good,” Waddle said. “It was kind of a big play in the game so it’s always good to put your team in scoring position. I think it was a play well-called, well-designed and executed well.”
In the past two games, wins against the Ravens and Houston Texans, eight of Waddle’s 16 targets have come at least 10 yards downfield — a noticeable difference for a receiver who has been targeted behind the line of scrimmage or within 9 yards more than 75 percent of the time this season — though Waddle said there hasn’t been a concerted effort to get him the ball downfield more.
“I think it’s just trying to put me in spots where I can help the team, ultimately,” he said. “Honestly, I wouldn’t say it’s been an emphasis just to do that. Honestly, I’ve just been going out there lining up, alignment, assignment and trying to get the job done.”
Like many of the Dolphins’ rookies, Waddle has been asked to do much early on and line up in different positions with varying responsibilities. Though he was billed as a potential matchup nightmare in the slot coming out of Alabama, Waddle has played about 33 percent of his snaps out wide.
“I just think I’ve learned so much throughout these 10 games,” Waddle said. “Like weekly, you learn something new. Just going into the game plan of how we are going to play, what we are going to do, how we are going to execute. ... It’s a lot and it’s weekly. You could do something one week and do something totally different the next week. You’ve just got to take it, really study it, learn it and learn it to a T because when Sunday hit, everything is coming fast.”
In a season that has seen many of the Dolphins’ top pass-catchers sidelined by injury or fail to make any impact on game days, Waddle has arguably been the most consistent.
“I think Jaylen is doing well,” Tagovailoa said. “Jaylen communicates a lot out there with what he sees, things that he likes. But I would say everyone in this league knows on third downs who we like going to. With Jaylen, with however many receptions he has already on third down and then also normal downs too. But yeah, I think he’s done a great job for us getting open and we just have to continue getting him the ball.”
This story was originally published November 18, 2021 at 4:05 PM.
